Ben Stone

Mapping Crew - California

Ben Stone grew up in Southern California with family and friends enjoying weekends in the high and low deserts off-roading everything from motorcycles, ATV's and Jeeps - essentially anything made for dirt. Ben recently moved from the fast paced living of Orange County to Lucerne Valley to be close to all of his favorite trails and bask in the desert tranquility. He enjoys long hikes with his dog Boots in the desert exploring new trails while discovering hidden places to share with other enthusiast. Ben’s rig is a 2015 JK Rubicon with a modest list of upgrades. Off-roading is more than a hobby to Ben, it’s the means to a peaceful lifestyle and spiritual connection to nature and our creator. Comradery with fellow wheelers and sharing the passion is his main goal as a team player with TrailsOffRoad.

Recent Trip Reports

Skull Rock Of Johnson Valley
12-16-2016

Another night ride to the Skull Rock.

Hamburger Hill
03-16-2017

Great late afternoon run. Weather was perfect. The last sections of the uphill are a bit more rutted out than normal with all of the past rainfall - be mindful and be prepared to navigate around some preciously placed ruts. Also, the BLM has been hard at work updating and putting in new trail markers - they are much easier to read and more of them.

Rattlesnake Canyon - RC3331
03-08-2017

This was my first time running this trail...and what a fantastic trail it is! From the high canyon walls to the ancient Joshua Tree forest that await you at the end of the trail - it's packed with fun things to see and also just difficult enough to keep you focused on where you are going. Interestingly, I was able to still experience the overflow from multiple natural springs that created wet spots along the trail - not sure if this is due to the recent rainfalls or if this is a normal occurrence throughout the year - but it does make for fun mud slinging.
I like the fact that the end of this trail puts you on Burns Canyon, which is also another great trail that leads to many other ancillary trails like Tip Top Mountain, Heartbreak Ridge and Sidewinder Canyon.